2014 Preview: No. 9 Georgetown

Last season the Hoyas made a return to the NCAA tournament after missing out for two straight seasons. Despite putting together a 13-6 season and snagging the No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament, No. 12 Virginia bounced the Hoyas early in a 10-8 bout. Georgetown is poised to make an even bigger run with only two big time starters graduating.

The Hoyas enter this season with a lot of confidence on the offensive end. With an excess of Hoyas lined up to put the ball in the net, Georgetown is deep. Last season, six Hoyas hit the 20 goal mark. Now it comes down to fine tuning and improving shot percentage, which will be a point of emphasis.

What Returns Georgetown is one of the lucky tournament teams that will keep most of its team intact. The Hoyas will see four of its top five scorers return to the roster, keeping their firepower from last season that averaged 12.16 goals per game. With Caroline Tarzian leading the way, the ability to score quickly should be the strongest element of the Hoyas. Despite all of the offense, the biggest storyline to keep an eye on is the Hoyas goaltending. This will likely be the make or break position for Georgetown. If senior Barb Black can reduce her GAA (9.99) and up her save percentage (.350), the Hoyas could make for an extremely tough out in the NCAAs.

No matter how good the offense is, if Black can’t stop goals from going in it will be another early exit. In their NCAA tournament matchup against Virginia, Black saw 37:31 minutes of action and gave up eight goals. A then rookie Megan McDonald took over for the remaining 22:29, allowed just two goals and saw her team go on a 6-2 run. It is Black’s starter role to lose, but do not be surprised to see a change if the results are not up to snuff.

What They'll Miss Last season, Ashley Hunter led the team in caused turnovers with a total of 21 and scooped up a second-best 27 ground balls. Hunter leaves a gaping void in a defense that managed to hold its opponents to 184 goals to its 231. Hunter is a player whose intangibles defined her gritty style of play. Perhaps more importantly then losing her stats, the Hoyas will be forced to find a player to replace her voice and inspiration.

“Ashley’s a great athlete, not only was she a very dynamic one-one-one defender but she was very good team defender,” Fried said. “Really, you don’t replace Ashley in one foul swoop. I think the biggest thing we’ll look to do is to make sure we’re playing the best team defense possible in front of our goalies. Somebody else will have to step into that leadership and that’s going to be I think our biggest challenge is to see who’s going to take over that role. It may be more by committee than by one player.”

Kelsi Bozel departs leaving a gap in the midfield, opening up spots for Hannah Franklin and Kelyn Freedman to step in as leaders. Bozel led the team in draw controls with 51, a stat the Hoyas will sorely miss. Freedman will take the brunt of the responsibility and try to get the ball to the high octane offense.

(Photo: Larry French)

Monster Season Potential With the departure of midfielders Sophia Thomas and Kelsi Bozel, expect Hannah Franklin to become an even bigger threat for the Hoyas. As a senior, Franklin can emerge as a go-to middie. With her .804 shot on goal percentage and .490 shot percentage, the more the Hoyas pass the ball her way the better. Given that shot percentage will be a focus point for the Hoyas this season, Franklin can help lead the charge. Against Team USA back in October, Franklin managed to net three goals and managed to pick up three draw controls. Her goal effort was bested only by fellow middie Kelyn Freedman who netted four goals. The two in tandem will make a great pair.

Star Watch Junior Caroline Tarzian will spring back to action come February and resume her role as consummate starter. Last season, Tarzian posted career and team high numbers. As the leading point (50) and goal getter (36), Tarzian is at a crucial juncture in her career. Last season, she made the Third All-America team and was one of the 25 Tewaaraton Finalists. With new upperclassman status, keep watch for Tarzian to make the leap from dangerous to persistent threat.

Senior Kelyn Freedman was the only other player on the team to hit the 30 goal mark and will likely be able step up the transition game this season. Freedman is invaluable because of her ability to win draw controls. With a total of 46 last season, nothing kick starts an offense like winning possession at the draw. One area Freedman will need to improve to be consistent: reducing fouls. With a team high 32 last season, that is one stat the Hoyas would be happy to see drop rather than increase.

Rookie Ball As if the returning bunch of scorers was not enough, the Hoyas have a new, dynamic attacker in freshman Colleen Lovett. The Wantagh, N.Y. native racked up 66 goals while dishing 54 assists in her senior season. Coach Fried said Lovett is a player who not only exudes confidence but understands the game really well and is very skilled. Watch for her to make an immediate impact with her speed and cutting abilities. Making her presence felt in the Under Armour game, Lovett has a good grasp of using her 5-4 frame in tight spaces to find her teammates and get open quickly.

Another rookie to watch is goalie Maddy Fisher. With the goaltender position on open for change as the season goes on, Fisher may get clean-up time or even challenge for significant playing time. The race for starting time between the cage started in fall ball. It will be fun to see who comes out on top.

Game to CircleGeorgetown at Duke, March 5 at 5 p.m. The losses Georgetown suffered last season all came at the hands of elite NCAA Tournament stalwarts. You know the names: Duke, UNC, Notre Dame and Syracuse. To prove they can hang with the top ten, the Hoyas will need to pick up wins in the out of conference schedule against tough opponents. Georgetown’s first shot will come against Duke. In 2013 the Hoyas made a push late in the game, similar to the failed comeback in the NCAAs, only to fall one goal short to the Blue Devils and lose 11-10 at home. This game will be a great test early in the season for the Hoyas against an offensive-minded team on the road. Win or lose, GU will discover its strengths, weaknesses and areas in need of improvement. This mid-week matchup under the lights should be a competitive test.